


So A Vampire Walks Into A Bar

by rhetoricalrogue



Category: The Wayhaven Chronicles (Interactive Fiction)
Genre: Dialogue Heavy, Drinking & Talking, Gen, Mild Language, Smoking, Zoe has a bad relationship with her mother, Zoe has a potty mouth, bar setting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-16
Updated: 2020-05-16
Packaged: 2021-03-02 17:08:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,831
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24210361
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rhetoricalrogue/pseuds/rhetoricalrogue
Summary: It's been a rough couple of days for one Detective Zoe Dawson. The leader of Unit Bravo finds her in a familiar haunt to check in. Takes place after the midway-point of Book One.
Relationships: implied Female Detective/Mason
Comments: 8
Kudos: 29





	So A Vampire Walks Into A Bar

**Author's Note:**

> Dipping my toes into a new-to-me fandom and attempting to knock some rust off my writing. Does Adam even drink? Well he does now, or at least he holds a bottle of beer to give the impression that he's blending in!
> 
> I'm over at [Tumblr](https://rhetoricalrogue.tumblr.com/)! Come say hi!

The Rust Bucket was one of the nicer dive bars in town, if a dive bar could be considered “nice.” Zoe liked the fact that it was off the beaten trail which meant it was rarely crowded, the bar food was decent, the music not too loud, and the drinks were cheap. Add the fact that the owner was one of her closest friends since childhood - narrow misses with the cops as teens and all - and it was a no-brainer that this was her go-to spot to wind down after a long day at the station.

She was at her usual perch at the end of the bar, freshly-lit cigarette in hand and her drink making a ring of condensation on the scarred wooden surface when she felt a prickle of awareness between her shoulder blades.

“I take it you’re my babysitter for the night,” she commented, taking a drag from her cigarette and blowing it out with a slight bit of annoyance.

“Detective.” There was a dull clink of glass as Adam set the bottle of beer he was holding onto the bar. “This seat taken?”

Zoe shrugged, but shifted in her seat so she was turned more towards him. “Didn’t take you to be a guy to knock back a cold one.”

His lip quirked in what she swore was the smallest of smiles. “Something tells me that you haven’t given me much thought aside from what a, what did you call me? A pain in your ass?”

She winced. “You weren’t _supposed_ to hear...super senses, that’s right.” She took a drink. “To be fair, I didn’t know about the hearing thing or else I wouldn’t have said anything.”

This time, she was certain he was smiling. “Well, to be fair, I would have heard about it anyway. Someone would have said something.” He leaned against the bar. “Didn’t know you smoked, the way you gave Mason hell when he lit up in your office, I would have thought otherwise.”

“There’s no ventilation, plus I have my reasons for not doing it in the office. Does it bother you? I can put it out if it does.”

He waved a hand and sat down at the stool next to her. “I work with Mason. It doesn’t bother me.” He took a drink and looked at her pointedly. “Speaking of, he’s kind of pissed you ghosted him tonight. _He_ was supposed to be your babysitter.”

“Yeah, well, I know how much he hates busy places with a lot of noise and I...” Zoe frowned, trying to pick her words. “I didn’t feel like being looked at like a piece of meat tonight. Not that I’m not flattered, but until this case is over, I’d rather concentrate on only one guy out for my bod, you know?”

She flicked ash into the worn, beaten up tray at her elbow. She’d be lying if she didn’t think that Mason was attractive, and it was a refreshing change to be paid attention to by someone as direct as he was instead of dancing around an obvious mutual thing for who knew how long. The timing was off though; she had some guy killing people in her town to catch, and then there was the whole supernatural thing to get a handle on...

“About that,” Adam said, picking up on where her thoughts had roamed to. “How are you feeling?”

“About? The part where my mother lied to me my entire life or the part where I’m playing team-up with a bunch of _super_ agents?” Zoe kept her voice low. The music coming through the overhead speakers was loud enough to avoid eavesdropping from any regulars who may have wanted to indulge in a little rubbernecking as soon as they noticed an Outsider chatting up a Local Gal, but she didn’t want to take any chances.

“Little of column A, little of column B.”

Zoe’s frown deepened as she fished the orange peel out of her drink and swirled it around the glass, more for something to do with her hands while she figured out what to say. “I’m used to column A, it’s B that’s taking a little while to sink in. It isn’t every day a girl is told the same sort of...news,” The _there is such a thing as supernatural beings out in the world and you’re surrounded by a team of vampires keeping you and your super special blood safe from an evil vampire_ part was unspoken, but she was pretty sure Adam got the hint. “There’s this guy who has a stand-up special. One of the lines that sticks out is _this might as well happen. Adult life is already so goddamn weird._ ”

“I don’t make a habit of watching comedians.”

“Oh.”

“But I understand where you’re coming from.” He gave her a long look and she squirmed, knowing exactly what she probably looked like to him: some punk barely breaking into her thirties with the day’s eye makeup smudged from rubbing her face out of tiredness and stress, a couple of drinks in and on her third cigarette of the evening. “I guess we should count ourselves lucky you didn’t run screaming once you learned the truth.”

There was a brief moment where Zoe realized he was cracking a joke. “Look at you, mister _I don’t watch comedians_. Better be careful, or I may think you’re starting to warm up to me.”

It was his turn to frown. “I don’t dislike you, Detective. It’s -”

“Zoe.” She could see him open his mouth to protest, but she cut him off. “From the hours of eight am to five pm, you can call me Detective Dawson if it makes you happy, but it’s Zoe o’clock from five-oh-one in the evening to seven fifty-nine in the morning.”

His shoulders relaxed a little. “All right. I don’t dislike you, _Zoe_. I’m used to a mission going one way, and that’s by my standards.” He rolled the bottle between his hands. “We got off on the wrong foot, and for that I apologize.”

“It’s not like it was all one sided. When I was younger, I had a thing against authority figures. Having someone barge into my precinct and take over my case made me revert to my old ways. It was unprofessional of me.”

“You don’t have to apologize. It’s -”

She took a long swallow from her glass. “Hey, I know when I’ve been a snarky bitch and things would have probably progressed a lot faster if I had cooperated with you from the start. Let me apologize for being an asshole so I can get it off my chest, okay?”

There was that little hint of a smile again. “Apology accepted then. Hopefully this time we can work in better harmony to capture Murphy.”

Zoe nodded. “I want this to be over with quickly. You know that this is my first case as a detective.” She flicked at the orange peel in her glass again. “Before you showed up, when I thought that this was just some ordinary murder, I had a lot at stake. This promotion was a surprise and honestly, I really don’t think the Captain wanted to give it to me.”

“Why wouldn’t he? It’s clear that you’re good at your job.”

“Let’s just say that I know if there had been someone more qualified available, I would still be working the beat with Tina. I _know_ I’m a good cop. I’ve worked my ass off to get from where I started to where I’m at now and I’m _damned_ good at what I do. I also know that I’m a risk: I have a temper and swear like a sailor. I play fast and loose with the rules and tend to be better at breaking up bar fights with my fists than I am at talking with citizens on a regular basis. This town is as familiar to me as the back of my hand, but this position means that I’ve got to work twice as hard to make sure that my Captain knows he didn’t make the wrong decision.”

Adam looked at her and waited until he knew he had her full attention. “For what it’s worth, I think you’re doing a good job.” His lip twitched upwards again. “Even in the face of some asshole barging in and throwing his weight around on your turf.”

She laughed. “You weren’t supposed to hear _that_ either.” She crushed out the remainder of her cigarette in the ashtray. “And listen, I know I’m not…” she vaguely gestured between them. “On par with your team’s talents, but I can hold my own. You saw at the station that I can handle myself; don’t wrap me up in bubble wrap just because Rebecca’s trying to do the same. I can take one person breathing down my neck and treating me with kid gloves, I don’t need four more.”

“Agent Dawson is good at her work, she wants to see you safe.”

She made a dismissive noise as she scowled. “Like you said, she’s good at her _work_.” Zoe ran her hand through her hair. She’d taken it out of the professional looking ponytail after the elastic band had started giving her a headache and the mass of inky black waves fell loose down the middle of her back. She closed her eyes and took a centering breath, slowly letting it out through her nose. “I can respect her for that, but don’t expect a miracle to happen on a personal level. That bridge got burnt years ago and whatever she’s trying to rebuild now that I know what she’s been up to is being built on some pretty shitty foundation. She wasn’t around for most of my life, she can’t expect me to run into her arms just because they’re open now.”

He nodded. “So long as the mission is completed and you stay alive, you won’t hear anything from me about your personal relationships.”

“Thanks.” She gave him a coy glance. “Does that include _all_ of my personal relationships?”

One of his eyebrows raised. “If you’re talking about Agent Mason, all I have to say on that front is that you’re both consenting adults. So long as it doesn’t interfere with this case or put you into danger, then my opinion shouldn’t bother you.” He paused. “Earlier, you said that he was looking at you inappropriately. I could have a word with him about that if you wanted.”

Zoe shook her head and grinned. “I’m a big girl, I’m perfectly capable of telling a man no when he makes me uncomfortable. Thanks though, Agent.”

He tipped his head. “The clock on the wall says it’s eleven-thirty. I thought we were saving titles until eight o’clock tomorrow morning.”

“Okay then, Adam.” She held out her glass. “To partnerships. Let’s catch this fucker and not get me killed.”

He clicked his bottle against her tumbler. “I’ll drink to that.”


End file.
